Act Music

The coronavirus pandemic has really shown music’s ability to bring us together and provide comfort in difficult times: whether it’s through singing on balconies during lockdown to entertain our neighbours, professional musicians performing online to bolster spirits, or providing the soundtrack to keep us moving at home.When ABC Classic asked listeners to recommend the music that gives them an instant mood boost, the response was almost overwhelming, with hundreds of different suggestions.

With this second release on ACT singer, songwriter and hymnist Janne Mark presents a kaleidoscopic travelogue from her pilgrimages in life and art. KONTINENT is a soaring departure from PILGRIM (2018) and documents the expanding collaboration with musical miracle worker Arve Henriksen.

Sir John Barbirolli is featured in a career-spanning collection entitled British Music, heading the Philharmonia Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, and others as they delve in to the work of Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Delius, Purcell and more!

Swiss vocal acrobat Andreas Schaerer and Finnish guitarist Kalle Kalima have some things in common. As artists, each is essentially in a category completely of his own. Both are musicians who can always conjure something special from their chosen instruments.

The two Swedes Jan Lundgren and Hans Backenroth are musical storytellers, their playing is without any vanity and full of vivid stories. Qualities that Lundgren has already demonstrated with his own projects, the pan-European success trio "Mare Nostrum" and in duos with trombonist and singer Nils Landgren and bass icon Georg Riedel. Especially the latter finds a worthy continuation in the collaboration with Backenroth, an internationally sought-after European bassist.

Madrid-based pianist Daniel Garcia carries within him a deep sense of the history that has made him. This is not least because he was born and grew up in Salamanca, a city steeped in history, with several important archaeological sites. In the centuries ever since the middle ages, student priests have walked in their flowing robes along the Calle Compañia, a street in the centre of the city shadowed by tall baroque buildings.

The music of the French native, Valencia-based cellist Matthieu Saglio combines influences from all around the Mediterranean, from North Africa to Southern Europe. He first gained international recognition as a member of the trio "NES" and the album "Ahlam" in 2018. Soon after Saglios' solo debut "El Camino de los Vientos" earned huge success, especially in the digital world, and has been played over seven million times on Spotify alone.

"Life never goes in a straight line. Our world is full of surprises. Things we have known forever can change before our very eyes. So the challenge is to keep level-headed, to ensure that our lives stay in balance on the personal, the social and the political level.”

“I don’t think I have ever known a musician with quite the level of openness to people, to emotions, to musical languages, and the capacity to make them his own as Florian Willeitner.

It is no exaggeration to say: Norwegian tenor saxophonist Marius Neset plays in his own league. In addition, he is one of the most fascinating and versatile composers in jazz and far beyond - which, among other things, currently takes him as far as London's Royal Albert Hall. Downbeat states, "Marius Neset is not the future, but the present of European jazz." The album "Happy" features Neset with a new, top-class quintet. The album is divided into two parts: In the first half, playful, intricate, energetic songs dominate. And in the second part, Neset & Band take the listeners into a calmer suite. What all pieces have in common: You can hear the musicians' pure joy of playing in every note.